Cardinal thanks first responders in church homily

Apr. 21, 2013
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Boston Police Superintendents William Evans, right, and Kevin Buckley, left, attend Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on the first Sunday after the Boston Marathon bombings. / Mario Tama, Getty Images

by Yamiche Alcindor, USA TODAY

by Yamiche Alcindor, USA TODAY

BOSTON - The first Sunday since the Boston Marathon bombing began in at least one place with messages of forgiveness and prayers for victims of this week's carnage.

At Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Cardinal Sean O'Malley told a packed church that the focus must be on reconciliation, not revenge or retribution. His words comforted some while others admitted that they struggled with the idea of forgiving the evil of terrorism.

"Forgiveness is part of our obligation as disciples of the Lord," O'Malley said. "It's only a culture of life and ethic of love that can rescue us from a culture of violence."

He added that as a Catholic he opposes the death penalty, which he called a "further manifestation of the culture of death in our midst."

Considered the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and the seat of the cardinal, Cathedral of the Holy Cross holds about 2,000 people. Thursday, President Obama, several state and city officials as well as various clergy members attended an interfaith service there in honor of the bombing victims.

Sunday, hundreds of people filled the church's pews for the mass including Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis, firefighters, and marathon runners and volunteers.

Several people wore blue and yellow marathon jackets. Others wore American flag pins, earrings, and in one case, a shirt that read "04-15-13, Never Forget." Many somberly kept their heads down, silently cried, and held each other. The sound of the choir and a 1875 pipe organ filled the large building lined with stained glass windows.

During his 15-minute homily at the 11:30 a.m. Mass, O'Malley thanked law enforcement officials, first responders and civilians who helped during and after the tragedy. He also prayed for the victims and their families as well as for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, the two brothers suspected of carrying out the tragedies of this week.

At the front of the church, photos of the four people killed sat nearby large lit white candles. Killed in the bombings were Martin Richard, 8, Krystle Campbell, 29, and Lu Lingzi, 23. MIT police officer Sean Collier, 26, was shot in his police cruiser. More than 170 people were injured.

"We have to forgive," said Charlie Atty, 74, who traveled from Dover, N.H., to visit Boston this weekend. "I find it difficult to understand how someone could do such evil. What happened to him? Was he hurting so badly that he had to do something so evil to our society?"

Richard Paris, 54, a Boston firefighter and president of Local 718, came with his wife, Eileen Paris, 53, and their son, Michael Paris, 14. The family had many friends, including first responders who were on the scene when the bombs went off.

Both husband and wife said O'Malley's message hit home and reminded them of the importance of faith and compassion - even for the suspects.

"The world's got to get on one page," Richard Paris said.

However, some struggled with talk of mercy for a man who may have carried out such heinous acts.

Deborah Spirio-Turi, 55, who was running the Boston Marathon when the bombing went off, said terrorism has called into question whether she can forgive.

"Terrorism kind of changes the equation a little bit," said Spirio-Turi, a department store jewelry manager. "Before a lot of the tragedies that have been going on in the world, my faith would be that I would forgive and not be for the death penalty. Now, I just don't know."